What Are the Best Rods of All Time?

Hot Rod Staffers Cast Their Votes

OK, as we learned, you can’t very well pose that question to the staff of Hot Rod magazine. Well, you can, but it’s not going to result in a simple answer. First, each staffer had to reflect on 50-plus years of cars, concepts, and customs. After the guys took inventory, they were forced to pare down their list of favorite cars from somewhere in the ballpark of a rock concert to just two per person. But in between the blood and sweat came an intriguing ballot of best cars, and through the tears they singled out 10 vehicles that made major waves in the industry, were personal minions, or contributed to the ever-changing definition of what a hot rod is.

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A car that could actually make a guy crazy? That’s what Bill Thomas created when he swapped a 327 Fuelie Corvette engine into a Chevy II with factory parts. Ro says, “It was the ultimate sleeper swap that included everything, and it could be yours for half the price of a Vette. The neighborhood Factory Experimental maven–known for his Fuelie small-block 1962 Biscayne–later duplicated the application on his 1966 Chevy II and caused a small sensation.”

Issue: March 1962

Ro’s second pick was the Blair Speed Shop 1955 Chevy Gasser, better known as Tabasco. At the time, Ro had a 1955 Gasser with a one-piece tilt nose, the Hilborns, and the requisite 10-percent engine set-back, but it was sans a spiffy appearance and the Tabasco’s solid front axle. This “epitome of the genre,” as he calls it, appeared on the cover of Hot Rod, shot from below waist level, hooking hard and pulling the wheels. “So cool,” according to Ro. Actually, he added an expletive in that sentence for emphasis, but suffice it to say he thought Tabasco was so very cool.

Issue: April 1967

Gray Baskerville, Senior Editor

Asking Gray to pick a hot rod or two is like asking him to name his favorite toe: They’re all functional, necessary, and distinctive in the looks department. But we managed to weaken him and learned that CadZilla, the ZZ Top mobile, was among his top picks. Not only was it radical, it was the epitome of the “Dare to Be Different” era.

Issue: October 1989

A cool street rod? “John Buttera is one of the most amazing characters I’ve ever met. His first street rod, a resto-style 1927 T sedan was and is as amazing as its builder,” says Gray. “Even though it was finished more than 25 years ago, it’s as fresh and dependable as it was when it graced the cover of Hot Rod.”

Issue: December 1974

Steve Magnante, Technical Editor

You know you’re destined to be a hot-rodder when at age 10 you’re already worshiping back issues of Hot Rod, Car Craft, and Super Stock & Drag Illustrated and trying to learn all you can about high-performance cars. The one that most got Steve’s young goat was the Hemi Dart. When he turned 15, he discovered a Hot Rod article written by none other than Gray Baskerville about Lou Mancini’s restored 1968 Hemi Dart. “It was the first time a magazine writer discussed the historical significance of these amazing cars, possibly priming the pump for the musclecar restoration boom of the 1980s,” recalls Steve. “Today the legend of the 426 Hemi is as strong as ever.”

Issue: November 1979

“I was less than a year old when Hot Rod ran the story of Don Nicholson’s A/FX Comet Cyclone, but the car is so timeless that it seemed like a brand-new machine to my eyes when I discovered the article in the early 1970s,” says Steve. He didn’t dig the 1965 Merc Comet just because of its lines; rather, it was because this particular Comet “represented a state-of-the-art weapon designed to defend and perpetuate the performance image of Ford’s Lincoln-Mercury division.” Instead of a mild-mannered production-based 289, Nicholson’s Cyclone had a top-secret super-powerplant: the exotic SOHC 427 Hemi head. “The fact that these technically advanced motors were not available to the general public heightened the mystique all the more. Articles like this one fueled my quest for more knowledge regarding factory-built race cars. I haven’t owned a 427 S.O.H.C. motor yet, but I’m still looking!”

Issue: April 1965

Terry McGean, Technical Editor

Mark Stielow’s 1967 Camaro was notable for Terry because he’s a long-time fan of first-generation F-cars and appreciates old cars that have been enhanced with modern technology. Using many GM parts, Mark updated the car with improved front-suspension pieces, enormous brakes, late-model Corvette rollers, and a race-bred GTP 396-inch V-8. “Judging simply on appearance alone, this 1967 is high on my list,” says Terry. “It’s extra mean yet quite clean, thanks to the proper stance and wheel/tire combo–and without all the geegaws so many feel compelled to tack on.”

Issue: August 1996

According to Terry, “Mike Lewis’s 1967 Buick Riviera is a rolling example of how less can be more. By removing much of the factory trim, Mike was able to bring out the car’s true lines and features.” Give it a quick once-over and you’ll think it’s fairly custom, but look closer and all that’s new is the early-Riv quarter-panel trim in the front fenders, mirror-finish black paint, a drop, and modern big-inch wheels and tires. “I also appreciate that he retained Buick power, as the 1967 is now motivated by a warmed-up 455 in place of the original 430. This car represents what can result when someone with powerful imagination applies his vision to a less-popular body style.”

Issue: July 2000

Jeff Koch, Feature Editor

Two that stand out for Jeff are Scott Steiden’s 1982 Pontiac J2000 and Don Hardy’s 1957 Olds. “Both are orange, and both are photos of mine that appeared as cover insets–but that’s not why I liked them!” Jeff insists. Truth be told, he says, “the Poncho is an all-around street cruiser of a kind we haven’t seen since. Frankly, I wish we would.”

Issue: May 1999

Jeff says the 1957 Olds is one of the cleanest cars he’s ever photographed. It featured an effective use of electronics–adapting LT1 computers and a 1950’s vintage Olds engine rather than going with something like digital gauges inside. It’s also a body style that’s not your average bear. “I like seeing something other than the same old, same old. I drove this car on Power Tour West 1999 and it was my first Three on the Tree experience, so it holds a place near and dear to my little black heart.”